topic Re: Mexico & RING™ app Issues. in The Lounge

Mexico & RING™ app Issues.

G_Pomzz — Thu, 25 Jan 2024 13:05:26 GMT

Just a heads up to anyone traveling to Mexico. I'm currently staying at the Royalton Riviera, Cancun. The WiFi is great but they use a VPN. Because of this certain apps will not work. Namely, I cannot access my Ring Alarm system & cameras at my house! I did not arm the system when we left home because I figured it would be no problem doing it over WiFi at the resort but the app would not open. I also have a Honeywell WiFi thermostat which I use to monitor my heating system and I can't access that either due to the VPN.

I realize I can buy a local sim card with data and that should work or go to a spot that has WiFi not behind a VPN but this resort is isolated and the closest town with an OXXO store to purchase a sim card is a $50 cab ride away. Thankfully I have a friend who can go over to the house, and verify that the heat is on and also arm the alarm system.

This is the first time I've ever encountered this issue while traveling. With so many Canadians traveling here it would be advisable for PM to offer a roaming add on for Mexico.

Re: Mexico & RING™ app Issues.

fixin — Thu, 25 Jan 2024 13:56:50 GMT

@G_Pomzz - I can agree with you, there is roaming upsides and downsides with Public Mobile vs third tier carriers such as:

Public Mobile does ONLY USA Roaming in packages that are prepaid

vs Lucky Mobile who doesn't even have USA roaming!

Or Chatr (Rogers) who has international roaming packages in the US, but Pay Per Use Rates just with atrocious bills with $30 per Megabyte (Or a $30,000 1gb bill!)

You could also (If your phone has eSIM) buy a eSIM card from Airalo, but I would prefer Physical SIM Slot.

Re: Mexico & RING™ app Issues.

G_Pomzz — Thu, 25 Jan 2024 14:00:58 GMT

Yes the eSim would be a good option but unfortunately my phone (POCO X4Pro 5G) doesn't support it.

Re: Mexico & RING™ app Issues.

fixin — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 01:30:05 GMT

@G_Pomzz - That sucks, hope you can possibly use a VPN on a VPN? If the hotel makes you download a VPN App, then that workaround wouldn't work, but if VPN is enabled via the router, you can use the app called: 1.1.1.1 and use WARP. You can also use Google VPN (Requires Google One Subscription) or Speedtest VPN (Free 2GB VPN Data.)

Re: Mexico & RING™ app Issues.

G_Pomzz — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 03:37:05 GMT

Okay, but not sure how that helps me. I contacted Ring tech support and they say no one is allowed to access their dashboard if using a VPN, for security purposes I assume.

I did find a work around actually. The LG smart TV in our room has an option to use the TV as a WiFi hotspot. Once enabled I connected to WiFi through the TV and was able to access my Ring™ dashboard with no issues.

Re: Mexico & RING™ app Issues.

fixin — Sun, 28 Jan 2024 16:25:22 GMT

@G_Pomzz - That's awesome to Know!